Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) Spring Conference

Tori Whitacre Martonicz is the editor of 

.  She has been a writer and editor for over 30 years, and she has an MA and BA in English Composition/Literature from the University of Akron in Akron, OH. She lives in Ohio with her husband; son; 2 tiny dogs, Selena Brigid Sophia and Doctor Danger Dog; and a big black cat, Freya. She loves reading, writing, gardening, and spending time with her loved ones.

Articles

Candida auris environmental contamination is unlikely to be adequately controlled because re-contamination occurs within hours after disinfection.


Candida auris Rapidly Recontaminates Surfaces Around Patients’ Beds Despite Cleaning and Disinfection

Videos

A patient has a higher risk of infection of C difficile in a hospital bed that previously held a patient who also had C difficile.


Can C difficile Infection Be Spread Via Hospital Beds?

Live attenuated influenza vaccine particles were released into a closed room to measure how many particles would get through the HVAC system.


HVAC Systems Prove Sufficient to Reduce Viral Pathogen Transmission Within a Hospital

However, a large-scale randomized controlled trial in health care is needed. 



Current Data Are Not Conclusive That Masks are Required in Non-pandemic Settings

Patient pressure is a key driver of primary care providers to prescribe antibiotics.


Telehealth Visits Produce an Antibiotic Prescription Rate Almost Half of In-Person Rate

Most information on SSI risk factors in the elderly is more than 10 years old. 


Prevention Strategies of SSIs for the Elderly Require More Attention 

Despite some benefits, challenges continue with implemented mitigation strategies for children and IPs. 


Protecting Children From COVID-19 Had Unintended Negative Consequences

IPs and other health care professionals needed to improvise. That improvisation led to investigations into how many times an N95 can be reused and still keep SARS- CoV-2 at bay.

With N95 Decontamination Process, 25 Reusages Possible

Frank Diamond has been with Infection Control Today since November 2019. He has more than 30 years of experience working for magazines, newspapers, and television news. 

Meri Pearson, MPH, CIC:  “Infection preventionists still need to do those active audits to make sure that they’re actually seeing what’s happening at the bedside.”

Software Developed for COVID-19 Also Tracks HAIs

Christina Yen, MD: “For any infection preventionists who are thinking about or are reviewing the need for VHP sometime in the future, just know that those colleagues that we’ve relied on this time around are going to be there and are going to be your partners in the VHP process.”